Title :
The high Tc superconducting bolometer
Author :
Richards, P.L. ; Verghese, S. ; Geballe, T.H. ; Spielman, S.R.
Author_Institution :
Dept. of Phys., California Uiv., Berkeley, CA, USA
fDate :
3/1/1989 12:00:00 AM
Abstract :
A description is given of the optimization of a bolometric infrared detector which uses the resistive transition of a high-T c film as the thermometer. The performance of an LN (Liquid nitrogen)-cooled far-infrared bolometer operated with a cooled low-pass filter is computed for the ideal case of a noise-free readout. The theory is then extended to include various contributions to the readout noise. Measurements are presented of the low frequency noise near Tc in current-biased films of ErBa2Cu3O7, which show that useful performance can be achieved. Comparisons are made with other infrared detection technologies which show that practical high Tc bolometers will be especially useful for wavelengths longer than the -20 μm cutoff of LN-cooled photovoltaic detectors. Potential applications include far-infrared laboratory spectroscopy and passively cooled space observations of bright sources such as the earth
Keywords :
barium compounds; bolometers; erbium compounds; high-temperature superconductors; infrared detectors; superconducting junction devices; superconducting thin films; thermometers; ErBa2Cu3O7; bolometric infrared detector; cooled low-pass filter; current-biased films; far-infrared laboratory spectroscopy; high temperature superconductor; low frequency noise; noise-free readout; passively cooled space observations; resistive transition; thermometer; Bolometers; Current measurement; Frequency measurement; Infrared detectors; Low pass filters; Low-frequency noise; Noise measurement; Photovoltaic systems; Solar power generation; Space technology;
Journal_Title :
Magnetics, IEEE Transactions on
